Run To Me
by AngelzbabeUK
Summary: In times of trouble and Grief, everyone needs someone to run to. An Isabel and Kyle story.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell. I present Season Three is evidence of this. I also don't own this song. It's by Clay Aitken.

A/N: I'm writing a diagonal universe. In this Universe, some of the stranger stuff at the prom (where Tess began to appear rather strange) didn't happen. Unfortunately, some of the things after the prom DID happen, though not exactly in the same way. The most important of these is the car accident really BEING a car accident.

**Run To Me**

_Don't, you don't have to save my life_

_No, you're not ready, I can feel it_

_Outside it's raining, but I'll just go home_

_Someday your heart will just let him go_

- - - - - - - -

He knew as soon as it began that it had to end. As much as he wanted to ignore that little nagging voice and drown in the feelings she evoked, his conscience knew him better than that. Knew that allowing it to continue would be something he'd never forgive. Not just for what it would do to her, but for what he would do to himself. It would shatter his respect; leave him a shadow of his former self. Because, in the long run, this wasn't what either of them needed.

If there was one thing Kyle's battered spirit knew without a doubt, it was that want and need were two very different things. And while kissing Isabel Evans may be every teenage boy's fantasy come true, his Inner Voice, the one that kept him on the straight and narrow and sounded remarkably like his father, knew this wasn't what he needed. Not now.

Because to Kyle, Isabel meant more than that. In the last few months she had become the center of his universe; his every thought was devoted to ensuring that she had not only what she said she _wanted_, but what she really _needed_. Something she invariably didn't even know herself. The loss of Alex had shattered the remaining walls of her Ice Queen persona; leaving her fragile, without anything to hide behind. Alex may have been melting the walls, but she'd still been the one holding the reins. After the car accident that had ripped him so unexpectedly from their lives, Kyle had become her wall; shielding her from reality and giving her time to regain her hold.

Now, as they sat in the Evans's living room, Kyle knew it was time he returned the reins to her. She'd become too dependant, and if he didn't act now, they were both on a road to nowhere. She needed to learn to stand on her own again, not to look to him to solve every problem. If he didn't hit the brakes, she'd drive head on into disaster, making _him_ her reason to live. Which was why he had to break this kiss. It was both the hardest and the easiest thing he'd ever had to do.

"Isabel. We're not going to do this." The hurt that immediately filled her eyes shattered his heart and hardened his resolve. "It's not that I don't want to. Believe me, there's nothing more in the world I want. It's that _you_ don't want to. Not really."

Isabel drew herself up, trying, but failing, to strike the regal pose of the Ice Queen. "If I didn't want to, I wouldn't have kissed you."

Kyle breathed a heavy sigh, raking a hand through his hair and staring into her confused eyes. "Are you sure about that Iz? It's only been a few months since the accident. He was a big part of your life, and you're looking to fill the hole he left." Neither of them needed or wanted to bring Alex's name into the conversation. "It's perfectly understandable. But you need time. You need to heal yourself before you can let another person into your heart. If you don't, any relationship's just gonna be rebound, and hurt you more in the process. I won't do that to you. You mean far too much to me." At that declaration, Kyle stood and headed for the front door.

- - - - - - -

_As soon as you get that feeling_

_You can start to live again_

_As soon as the worst is over_

_You can make it all make sense_

- - - - - -

Her voice, quiet and somehow loud all at once, stopped him as he reached for the door handle. "You mean a lot to me too, Kyle." His grip tightened, and he didn't even turn his head for fear of what he would see in her eyes.

"Which is why we're not going to do this. Not 'till I'm sure this is really what you want. But Isabel?" He risked a glance as he opened the door.

"Yes Kyle?"

"When you _are_ ready, really ready, I'll be waiting."

The sound of the closing door sent a hollow click right through Isabel's soul.

- - - - - - - -

_Right now I_

_Can't give you what you need_

_As soon as you get that feeling_

_Run to me_

- - - -

_**To be continued….**_

A/N: This is NOT the end, and in the end it will be happy. It's just going to be a bit of a bumpy ride to get there. Please let me know what you think.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Sorry for such the long wait between updates on this - I've been concentrating on other things! But here are the final two chapters of Run To Me.**_

**Chapter Two**

Staring at the calendar hanging from her wall, Isabel felt a numbness spread within her. A raging cold, filling her veins and leaving no room for any other feeling than numb. Even at the height of her Ice Princess days, she'd always had an inner fire behind those frosty walls. It was ironic that only now, with the walls shattered beyond repair, did she truly feel like she was made of Ice. But not the Ice of her old nickname, the solid as steel, uncaring front she had projected. Real Ice. Strong only to the casual observer, who never looked close enough to see the flaws. Ice wasn't strong, it was brittle. Apply heat and it melted, apply force and it shattered. Into thousands of pieces that, no matter how hard you tried, you would never get back together in the same way again. But even in millions of pieces, it remained Ice. When Isabel said she was Ice, she thought of shattered Ice. Because no matter what happened, she knew without a shadow of a doubt that she'd never be the same again. So the last five months had been spent doing the only thing shattered ice could do. Melting. Because as water, the pieces of ice could come together again.

So it was strange, that now, after she'd spent so long trying to become water, that she felt more like ice than ever before. It was as clear as day to her now that everything she'd been telling herself over the last few months, the statements of how she was getting better, how she had accepted what had happened, had been delusions. She was as broken now, sitting on her bed staring at the calendar, as she had been five months ago. She was just broken in a different way. The pain had mutated, changing from soul-wrenching agony to a constant, throbbing ache beneath her skin. She hadn't healed, she'd just pushed it deep inside. And all it had taken for it to come rushing back was a date upon her calendar.

It had only taken one glance to send bolts of ice shooting through her body. She'd been dreading this day for weeks, but nothing had prepared her for the agony that seeing this date would cause. This date was a monument to her agony, a reminder of everything the world had lost that fateful night. What should have been a day of celebration had become a day of mourning. Everything she had been trying so desperately to leave behind was brought back to the surface. Every memory they'd made together, every feeling he'd created from even the simplest of words or actions. And above all, the bone-shattering heartbreak of that moment when she'd realized that those moments were all she was ever going to have. That she'd never get to see his goofy smile again, that she'd never get to hear his voice or lose herself in his arms. That he'd never celebrate another birthday.

It seemed wrong somehow, that she should see this day when he could not. This was supposed to be his day of celebration, when she would get to repay him for the fool he'd made of himself upon hers. He was supposed to be here. Without him, she didn't know what to do. He'd been the center of her universe, and without him she didn't know how to feel anything anymore. The only thing she knew with absolute certainty was that she wouldn't get through this day alone. She needed someone and something to keep her occupied. She needed Kyle.

- - - - - - - -  
_Hush, you don't have to say a word__  
__Trust that I'm not gonna hate you for it__  
__Feels like my touch only brings back the pain__  
__Someday those memories will fade away_  
- - - - - - - -

The look in her eyes when he opened the door told him everything he needed to know. The pain radiated from her as clearly as if she was carrying a billboard proclaiming it for the world to see. This day was always going to be a harsh reminder, a test of just how well she was truly coping. That she'd turned up on his doorstep wasn't entirely unexpected, but the sheer power of her brokenness sent a jolt of agony through his heart, making him wonder whether his actions over the last two months had helped or hindered her.

After the incident in the Evans's living room, Kyle had begun to retreat from Isabel's life. Slowly but surely he'd been forcing her to stand upon her own two feet, to come out of the self-imposed isolation she'd hidden behind and deal with the real world once more. Though he'd known she wasn't dealing well, the very fact she was even trying had been progress. But now, as she stood on his doorstep looking like a lost lamb, he knew she was almost right back to where she started. And she'd come to him. Knowing, as they both did, that he'd be there for her. That he'd know, without her ever having to say a word, exactly what she needed.

And right now, she needed him. She needed to know that she wasn't alone, that she didn't need to deal with this by herself anymore. Years of isolating herself from those around her had left their mark upon her character, and sharing her feelings with others wasn't something she was good at. So she needed him. Someone who could tell simply from the look in her eyes exactly how she was feeling, who wouldn't push her to open up but just hold her until she felt able to stand alone. Pulling her into his arms, Kyle felt her façade shatter as she let the tears she'd been fighting fall.

**_Continued…._**


	3. Chapter 3

**_A/N: The third and final part of this story. I hope you like it, especially since it's not where I originally planned this story to go. It's where the characters wanted to story to go. They wrote it this way. If you don't like it, shout at them..._**

**Chapter Three**

Sitting there, Isabel couldn't believe it had really been a year. In some ways, it felt like only yesterday; in others, it felt like a lifetime had passed since that fateful day. Since she had last seen his special smile, the one he reserved only for her, or heard him crack some silly joke. He had been the first person to really see her; the first to get past the outer appearance and see the girl inside, flaws and all. And to love that girl; to love her not because of what she was or what she looked like, but simply because she was her. Isabel Evans. Without him in her life, the world would always be just a little less bright. With his death, the world had lost someone spectacular, and everyone who'd known him felt it. Maria and Liz had lost their childhood confidante, the third piece in their puzzle. It wasn't quite the same only having two of the Three Musketeers. Michael and Max had lost the first real male friend they'd ever had outside of each other; Kyle losing a friend he'd only just begin to really know. Even Tess, who had only known him for such a short period of time, had deeply felt the loss of one of the few people she'd ever known that actually knew who she was. Without him there, their group just wasn't the same. It couldn't be. They had all cared for him, and none of them would ever forget how deeply he had touched their lives.

But yet life had to go on. Time ticked by, the world revolved, and even with all the alien powers she possessed, Isabel couldn't stop things from changing. And thinking over this past year, over all that she had gone through after losing him, she knew that perhaps it was _she_ who had changed most of all.

- - - - - - -  
_How can I be brave enough to say goodbye?__  
__I'd die inside without you__  
__Can't you see it's hard enough to walk away?__  
__Don't look at me and make me wrong__  
__I've been through this to make me strong_  
- - - - - -

The past few months, since she had broken down so completely in Kyle's arms, had been a lesson in acceptance. Real acceptance, not the fake acceptance, born of denial, that she had been living in. With Kyle's help, she'd finally worked through the maelstrom of suppressed emotions, step by step learning to cope. She was stronger now than ever before. Strong enough to take that final step. On the anniversary of that terrible day that had taken her life away, Isabel felt she was finally ready to move on.

Sitting there, tracing his name in cold hard stone, she finally felt ready to say goodbye to the girl she used to be, and the boy who had meant the world to her.

"Goodbye Alex Whitman. I'll never forget you."

Placing a red rose in front of his name, Isabel stood and began to walk away.

- -- - - - -  
_As soon as you get that feeling__  
__You can start to live again__  
__Oh, as soon as the worst is over__  
__You can make it all make sense_  
- - - - - - -

As she walked, she thought over what to do now. Saying goodbye to Alex had closed a door upon a chapter of her life, and a blank slate sat before her. What she did now, at the start of this new chapter, would determine the way everything else was written. So many choices were open to her.

And yet there was only one thing she was sure of. Only one thing she knew without a doubt she wanted in her life from here on out. Or perhaps that should be only one person – Kyle. Because while a part of her heart would always belong to Alex, Kyle meant the world to her now. Somewhere in the past year she had fallen for him. And if losing Alex had taught her nothing else, it was to grab onto love with both hands.

- - - - - - -  
_As soon as you get that feeling__  
__As soon as you get that feeling_  
- - - - - -

So as she walked through the gates of Roswell cemetery, Isabel knew exactly what she had to do next. Taking a second to gain her bearings, Isabel began to run.

- - - - - -  
_Run to me_  
- - - - - -

**The End**

**_So what do you think? Good, bad? Please review - it feeds my creative muse ice cream._  
**


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